Engine



R. F. GATCH Ma'rch 27, 1934.

ENGINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed April 23, 1930 March 27, 1934. R,F GA H 1,952,495

- ENGINE Original Filed April 23, 1930 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 dam nu.

- March 27, 1934. R H 1,952,495

ENGINE Original Filed April 23, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 5III/IIIIIIA'II/I/IIA UNITED STATES PATENT? OFFICE.

ENGINE Robert F. Gatch, Columbus, Ohio Substitute for application SerialNo. 446,763, April 23, 1930. This application August 7, 1933,Serlal No.684,050 Y 1 k 2 Claims. (01. 60-2) This application is'a substitute forS. N. 446,763, Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken on filedApril 23, 1930. r the line 2-,-2 of Figure 1, 3

This invention relates to a combined internal Fig. 3 is a view in sideelevation partly broken combustion engine and a steam engine andwhereand showing more in detail the relation between 5 in means areprovided for making use of a radithe engine and its associatedcondenser,

ated heat generated by the combustion of the fuel Fig. 4 is a partialplan view of the head of the during the operation of the engine toconvert motor showing the steam header, water into steam which is usedto facilitate the Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view taken through.operation of the piston or pistons on their power the water regulatorused in connection with the.

.10 orworking stroke.. steam system of the engine, 4

It is a well known fact that the thermo-efficien- Fig. 6 is a similarview taken through the lower cy of an average gasoline engine iscomparatively d e e at at right angles to that low and that a largepercentage thereof is lost due closed in Figure to the escape of heatunits in the exhaust gases Fig. '7 is a horizontal sectional view takenon and through the water jacket of the engine. the line 7''7 of Figu e5, 70

An object of the present invention is to make Fig. 8 is a verticalsectional'view taken through use of the heat units in the exhaust gasesfor rais-' the P p used i ,eenheetion W the pp ing' the efiicienc oftlie engine and to utilize this f rin m r Parti arly o th dr win wasteheat, whi h would otherwise be lost, for the numeral 1 designates yimproved engine '20 useful work. in its entirety, and which engineincludes two 75 It is also an object to provide a structure in the SetsOf Vertically aligned y i d 2 a 3, h form of a boiler which ispositioned and forms a latter being in p communication w the l part ofthe combustion'chamber of the engine and r se 4 and in which is locatedthe usual through which boiler structure the ignited gases crank and 0amShe-its 5 and 6 pe y. T

pass to give uppart of their heat to produce upper Set 2 0f h cylindersw h in h instance steam for delivery. to'expansion chambers formed seast formedintegial t the lower e 3 between the heads or the pistons andthe closed is formed smaller in diameter than the latter and ends of thecylinders where the expansion power is used for the expansion ofcombustible ases, of the steam is used todrive the pistons. whereas thelower set 3 is employed for the ex- A further object of the inventionlies in the ro-. pens n f s a R pr a w thin th se vision of a boiler orheat exchanger in which wacyl n are Pistons Which a e educed at theirter is heated to high temperatures by-the ignition upp ends 80 as to fitthe side Walls Of the pp r v of the fuelpassing' through said boiler,the heat cylinders and to Produce Working fac s 8 and 9 of the waterwithin the boiler or exchanger servwhich cooperate with the inner endsof the cylining to heat and evaporate the incoming fuel to ders to formexpansion chambers for the gas and form a highly combustible mixture. 1.the steam in their respective cylinders. i A still further object ofthe invention is to pro- Positioned between the upper ends of the cylinvide an invention of this character which is exders 2 and the cylinderhead 10 of the engine is tremely simple in construction, economical to aboiler. structure 11. which extends a considermanufacture and one whichis comparatively light able height above,the cylinders and is provided95 in weight and therefore applicable for use in airwith a plurality oftubes 12 passing therethrouglr planes or other air vehicles. ndconnecting the upper and lower walls 13 and Astill further objectresidesinthe provision of 14. The tubes 12 are in open communication anovel water level regulator which is thermostat-' with the cylinders 2and terminate at their upper ically controlled and serves to keep thewater level ends into chambers 15 formed at the upper end at a certainpredetermined level within the boiler. of the boiler structure 11. Thisboiler structure with these and other objects in view, which will may bebolted or otherwise secured to the cylinappear as the descriptionproceeds, the invention ders of the engine and the head 10 and thejoints consists in the novel features of construction; formed betweenthe ends thereof sealed by means combinations of elements andarrangements of of gaskets 16 so as to form a fluid tight conpartshereinafter to be more fully described and nection between the ends ofthe boiler, the c'ylpointed out in the appended claims. inders and thecylinder head. The cylinder head In the accompanying drawings: =10 maybe of the usual construction and is pro Fig. 1 is a verticaltransversesectional view vided with the customary inlet and exhaust ports 5 takenon theline 1-.-1 of Figure 2, for the fuel gases, and the valvemechanism 17 1 for governing the admission and emission of said gases.the usual manner from the cam shaft of the engine.

Associated with the boiler structure 11 is a reservoir 18 for holdingliquids such as water which is conveyed to the boiler structure by meansof a pump unit 19 and the line 2c. The pump includes a casing 21 whichis bolted or otherwise secured by fastening elements 22 to the framestructure of the engine. Mounted for reciprocation within this casing isa pump rod 23 which has its lower end formed with an enlarged head 24engaging a cam 25 provided upon the camshaft 6. It will be understood,of course, that this pump may be operated by any suitable mechanismother than the cam shaft. It will be seen that due to the location ofthe pump with respect to the reservoir that the liquid will gravi tatethrough the branch 24 of the pipe line 20 into the pump casing throughthe port 25 formed in the side wall of the casing 21. Thus, upon theupward movement of the pump rod 23 the water entrapped above the rodwill be forced upwardly through the line 20 and into the boilerstructure. The line 20 and 24 may be also equipped with oppositelyoperating check valves which. will prevent the return of the water andinsures the movement of the liquid in one direction. A

spring 26 may be interposed between the lower end of the pump rod 23 andthe engine frame and which spring serves to hold the head of the pumprod in operative contact with the cam 25.

The boiler structure 11 which consists of a hollow casing and connectsall of the cylinders 2 of the engine is provided with a port 27 locatedin its top wall 13 and with which port is aligned and connected thelower end of a tube or conduit section 28 leading to a steam dome orheader 29 positioned above the boiler and cylinder head 10. Leading fromthe steam header 29 is a conduit so which has its lower end connectedwith a horizontally extending manifold 31 leading to steam chests 32,each of which connects a pair of the cylinders 3. Operating to open andclose a port 33 leading into the upper end of the cylinder 3 andcommunicating with the steam chest 32 is a valve 34 which is governed inits operation by a double faced cam 35 fixed to the cam shaft 6.

The engine is shown to be of the four cycle type and comprises thecylinders 2 and the valve mechanism which is adapted to admit in theusual manner the explosive fuel through the proper ports and which isignited at the proper time by the spark plugs 36, the spent gases beingsubsequently expelled from the engine. The hot gases within the chambers15 and the tubes or flues 12 will, upon the working stroke of thepistons 7, be forced downwardly into the cylinders 2 and due to thegases contacting with the side walls of the flues will quickly raise thetemperature of the water so thatsteam will be generated and collectedwithin the dome or header 29 from where it is conducted by way of theconduit 30 and manifold 31 into the steam chests of the cylinders 3. Thevalve 34 is so timed that when the piston 7 starts down on its workingstroke the valve 34 will be opened and steam will be admitted back ofthe piston and against the face 8 so as to mom:-

The valve mechanism 17 is operated in,

' ter circulating system. It will be noted that due to the double facedcam 35 and the gearing between the crank and cam shaft, the valve 34will be opened to admit steam into the cylinder 3 at each revolution ofthe shaft or downward stroke of the piston. Thus, there will be acontinuous flow of power developed by the engine. As stated before, theengine proper which is of the four cycle type, will upon its exhauststroke force the exhaust gases back through the fines or tubes 12 andthe gas will again give off additional heat by contact with the tubesbefore passing out and into the atmosphere. By this arrangementsufficient steam will be developed to maintain a constant pressurewithin thesystem. To prevent a radiation of the heat through the outerwalls of the boiler 11 and the cylinders 3 the same may be covered withan insulating material 41. The cylinders 2 are provided with fins 42between which the air can pass in order to keep the internal combustionengine cool and at proper working temperatures. Due to the eliminationof the water jacket considerable weight is eliminated making the enginevery light and thus adapting the same for use in air service or otherplaces where an engine of light weight is desirable.

To maintain the liquid level at a proper height within the boiler thereis employed a regulator which is in communication with the lower part ofthe boiler structure 11 and the steam header 29. The regulator consistsof a tubular casing 43 formed at its upper end with an enlarged head 44which is hollow and in open communication with the casing 43 and thesteam dome 29 by means of the connection 45. The lower end of the casing43 is also in open communication with the interior water receiving spaceof the boiler 1i through the connection of the pipe section 48. Thus,the water will rise within the regulator casing to a height equal tothat of the boiler. Positioned within the casing 43 is a longitudinallyextending shaft 47 which has its ends formed with cone shaped points 48positioned within bearing caps 49 threadedly received within the upperand lower end of the regulator. The shaft is thus free to oscillate orrotate without undue friction. The bearing caps 49 are adjustablypositioned and may be regulated to take up any wear or slack which maydevelop between the ends of the shaft 27 and the conical seats providedwithin said caps. The lower end of the casing 43 is formed with areduced bore 50 for the reception of the enlarged portion 51 formed withthe lower end of the shaft 47. This enlargement serves as a valve andhas a transverse bore 52 formed therein which is adapted to registerwith a passage 53 forming a part f a by-pass, the purpose of which willappear latex; Positioned within the Bil hollow head 44 is a therm staticcoil 54 which is formed of two flat ribbons or metals having differentcoefiicient of expansion. This coil has its inner or centrally locatedend 55 rigidly'secured to the shaft 47 and its other end 56 anchored inthe side walls of the head 44. This thermostatic element or coil 54serves when heated or cooled to rotate the shaft so as to control theport 52 in and out of registration with the passage 53. g

The arrangement of the coil 54 and the port 52 is such that when thehead 44 is filled with steam the port 52 will then be out ofregistration with the passage 53 but when the water raises to the pointcovering the coil and due to the difference in temperature between thewater which is less than that of the steam, the coil will contractrotating the shaft 47 and the valve member 51 thus aligning the port52-"with the passage 53 permitting the water to drainthrough said portby way of the by-pass and into the line;5'7 which leads to the upperportion of the reservoir 18. It will be obvious that as the waterrecedes below the thermostatic coil the same will again expand due tothe heat of the steam and shut the passage 53 by means of theenlargement 51.

Due to the location of the pipe connection 46 at the lower end of theregulator the water will upon shutting down the engine and upon theopening of the by-pass and the cooling of the thermostat, gravitate backinto the reservoir 18 or to a level equal to that in said reservoir andcondenser. This emptying of the boiler will prevent damage to the boilerand its tubes due to freezing when the engine is standing idle in thecold seasons of the year. The pump unit 19 which is continuouslyoperated will upon the starting of the engine fill the boiler with watervery quick ly, and thus the steam will be instantly produced with thefirst revolution of the engine.

To prevent the water from entering the steam line 30, there is providedwithin the steam dome or header 29 a cylindrical member 58 which isclosed at its ends andprovided with a plurality of perforations 59located near the upper wall of the header. The perforations'59 due totheir location will admit steam to the member 58 but will prevent waterfrom entering the steam line due to vibrations and slight rockingmovements of the motor.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, it will be seen that in the operation of the engine thecombustion of the fuel takes place in the combustion chamber locatedabove the boiler structure and that the ignited gases pass downwardlythrough the tubes or flues in a plurality of streams or flames into thecombustion cylinders and due to the expansion of the gas move thepistons downwardly on their power or working strokes. Simultaneouslywith this operation a large portion of the heat contained in the gaseswill pass through the tube walls raising the temperature of the water inthe boiler to a high degree forming steam which is also utilized to actupon the piston thus adding more power thereto on their combustionstrokes and also aiding the same on their fuel intake strokes. On theexhaust strokes of the pistons the spent gases are again passed throughthe tubes to further give off heat before finally being expelled fromthe engine. The heated gases are thus used twice in their action ofraising the temperature of the water for forming steam. Due to the heatof the water and the heated tube walls the incoming fresh fuel chargewill upon the return stroke of the piston become heated, vaporized andthoroughly intermingled to form a highly combustible mixture which willbe easily fired thus making use of all the fuel within the cylinderresulting in a more economical operation of the engine.

As the water within the boiler is kept automatically at a certain level,and the boiler pressure is in ratio with the speed of the internalcombustion end of the engine no attention thereto is needed by theoperator of the engine. The pistons in the engine which are formed withtwo working faces, against which the expansible gases contact, providefor a larger working area making it possible for the engine to deliverconsiderable overload power with the added advantage of possessing ahigher degree of flexibility than the ordinary type of internalcombustion engine.

What is claimed is:

1. In an internal combustion engine the combination with the cylindersand the head therefor, of a boiler interposed between said cylinders andhead and provided with a plurality of vertically arranged fluesextending therethrough and in open communication with the interior ofsaid cylinders, there being a body of liquid within said boiler, fuelinlet and exhaust ports in said head whereby upon the operation of theengine the ignited gases will first pass through the flues in a downwarddirection upon the working stroke of the piston and again pass throughsaid flues upon the exhaust stroke of said engine before finally beingexpelled through said exhaust port.

2. In an internal combustion engine the combination with the cylindersand the head there-' for, of a boiler structure containing liquidinterposed between said cylinders and head and provided with a pluralityof vertically arranged flues in open communication with the interior ofsaid cylinders, the upper wall of said boiler being spaced from saidcylinder head to form a combustion chamber therebetween, means foradmitting fuel into said combustion chamber which upon 'being ignitedwill expand and pass downwardly through said flues and into thecylinders of said engine, whereby the heat transmitted to the tubes bythe passage of gases therethrough will raise the temperature of theliquid within said boiler structure.

ROBERT F. GATCH.

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